Vehicle-spring



(No Model.)

J. ENGLAND.

' VEHICLE SPRING.

No. 378,244. Patented Feb. 21, 1888'.

UNlTED STATES Parnnr JAMES ENGLAND, OF 'WHITE LAKE, MICHIGAN.

VEHlCLE-SPRING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 378,2d4t, datedFebruary 21, 1838.

Application filed October 5, 1887.

To all inf/.0717, z'z': may concern:

Be it known. that I, JAMES ENGLAND, a citizen of the United States,residing at lVhite Lake, county of Oakland, State of Michigan, haveinvented a certain new and useful Im proveinent in VehicleSprings; and Ideclare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of thesame, such as will enable others skilled. in the art to which itappertains to make and use the same, reference being bad to theaccompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification.

My invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in springsfor vehicles, and more particularly for use with two-wheeled ve hicles.

My object is to provide a vehicle-spring which shall be readilyadjustable for different weights, so as to give to the spring more orless flexibility, as occasion may require.

My invention consists, therefore, of the devices, appliances, and theircombinations, as more fully hereinafter specified and more particularlypointed out in the claims.

In the drawings which form a part of this application, Figure 1 is avertical crosssection in the rear of the crossbar, looking toward thefront of the vehicle. Fig. 2 is a side view of features embodying myinvention; and Fig. 3 is a cross-section along the line m, Fig. 1.

I carry out my invention as follows:

A A represent springs of any suitable construction. liptic in form,their convened port-ions being located adjacent to each other. They maybe made of any desired heft and provided with means of engagement attheir extremities-as, for instance, with eyes at a a.

B is a center block upon which the springs A A are engaged, as by meansof bolts 1).

G G represent movable supports located between the two springs at eitherend of the center block. These supports may be made of a wooden block,0, faced with side plates, 0' and c projecting above and below the upperand lower edges of the said block, so as to form projecting flanges orguides, which may embrace the edges of the springs when in juxtapositionwith the center block and help to keep the supports in proper position,the springs flexing between the flanges, so as to restin position uponthe supports when weighted. To

They may be partially or semi el-- Serial No. 25!.5-39. (No mode movethe said supports, I provide a togglelever mechanism consisting of anoperatinglever, D, pivotally engaged upon the center block, 13, andconnected by arms I) and I) with the supports, respectively, so that asthe operating-lever is thrown the said supports will be simultaneouslymoved to or from the center block, as the case may be. Thus, if it isdesired to stiffen the springs or make them less flexible, so as toadapt them to sustain greater weight, the supports would be throwntoward the center block. On the other hand, if it is desired to make thesprings more flexible, so that they shall be easier for lighter weight,the supports may be thrown toward the extremities of thesprings,permitting them to flex more readily. Thus, if asingle person wereseated on the vehicle, the supports might be moved outward to make thesprings easier for the rider; but should he take an additional partyinto the seat with him the supports might be thrown inward, so as togive less flexibility to the springs, as well as to overcome greaterliability of breakage. This adjustment may be made without leaving theseat, as the operating-lever may be located within easy reach of thedriver. So, also, this construction ena bles the operator to set thesupports in any desired position between the limits of theiradjustability; and to hold said supports in place, it it should bedesired to do so,I provide a 121Cl -l)1l, I l, supported upon the upperspring, or in any other suitable manner the operating-lever beingprovided with a spring-pawl, d, to engage said raolrbar. The rack-barmay or may not be employed, as may be preferred.

I support the springs in posit-ionic any proper manner-for instance, asfollows: F F represent the shafts; G, a cross-bar connecting the shafts,while If H represent the seat-supporting arms. These arms may be engagedat their forward ends in any desired way. They may be provided withmetallic straps iaturned at their extremities to form an eye, it, thesame being engaged with an eyebolt, I, in the adjacent shaft. The springA is supported at its extremities upon the cross-bar G in any waypreferred. For instance, the cross-bar may be provided with eyebolts g 5and the spring with a D or clip, a at each end, the same being united toits corresponding eyebolt in the crossbar by alink, J. The spring A,however, is

connected at its extremities with the seat-sup porting arms in anyproper way-as, for instance, the said arms are provided with stirrups KK, through which the said arms pass freely, the ends of the said springbeing provided with a D or clip, a", connected with the correspondingstirrup.

It will readily be seen that a weight upon the seat-supporting arms willbe communicated to the spring A, and thence directly to spring A,supported upon the cross-bar.

Vhat I claim as my invention is- 1. The combination,withvehicle-springs, of movable supports and means to adjust said supports,substantially as described."

2. The combination, with springs A and A, united by an intermediateblock, of movable supports located at the ends of said block and betweenthe ends of said springs, substantially as described.

3. The combination, with springs A and A, united intermediate of theirends, of movable supports located between the ends of said springs, andlever mechanism to operate said supports, substantially as described.

4. The combination, with a vehicle provided with seat-supporting arms,of springs A and A, the one engaged upon the said arms and the othersupported upon the vehicle, and movable supports located between saidsprings, substantially as described.

5. The combination, with springs A and A, of movable supports locatedbetween said springs and a locking device to hold said supports in agiven position, substantially as described.

6. The combination,with a vehicle provided with seat-supporting arms, ofsprings A A, having their convexed portions engaged inter-- mediate oftheir ends, one of said springs engaged at its extremities upon saidarms and the'other spring supported at its ends upon supports dependingfrom the shafts, substantially as and in the manner described.

In testimony whereof I sign this specifica- 43 tion in the presence oftwo witnesses.

JAMES ENGLAND.

Witnesses:

O. E. EVERTS, J. WV. STIsoN.

